Acetonitrile-Induced Destabilization in Liposomes

Kazunari Yoshida,Ryohei Mitsumori,Akito Takashima,Keitaro Horii,Izumi Nishio

doi:10.3390/colloids2010006

Kazunari Yoshida, Ryohei Mitsumori + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/colloids2010006

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Abstract

To understand the behavior of cellular interfaces, it is important to clarify the effect of chemical compounds on artificial cell membranes. In this study, an aqueous acetonitrile solution was mixed with a suspension of lipid vesicles, and the changes in vesicle behavior arising as a result of acetonitrile application were observed. The fast Fourier transformations (FFTs) of the membrane waviness/crinkliness of the vesicles were carried out, and the membrane thermal fluctuations were analyzed. The experimental results show that the addition of acetonitrile molecules enhances the fluctuation of lipid membranes. In particular, the k = 2 mode fluctuation was significantly enhanced. This finding is expected to lead us to a further understanding of the fundamental properties of living cells.

Highlights

The stability and dynamic nature of biological membranes play essential roles in living cells, namely in processes such as membrane trafficking and autophagy [1]
We show the mesoscopic effect of a low concentration (5 vol %) of acetonitrile on giant lipid vesicles under a uniform distribution of acetonitrile using optical microscopy, since optical microscopy is appropriate for the direct observation of the dynamic behavior of lipid membranes
These results demonstrated that the membrane displacement in samples with added acetonitrile (Figure 2b) was larger than in the control sample (Figure 2a)

Summary

Introduction

The stability and dynamic nature of biological membranes play essential roles in living cells, namely in processes such as membrane trafficking and autophagy [1]. The physical conditions of cell membranes, for instance, influence the rate of the cell division [2] Another literature shows that thermal fluctuation is necessary for cell division of bacteria [3]. For this reason, it is important to understand the stability and dynamic behavior of biological membranes. Artificial model systems of biological membranes, such as liposomes and water-in-oil (W/O) droplets, are quite beneficial for studies of the dynamic behaviors of biological membranes owing to the fact that liposomes and W/O droplets can be prepared and possess a simple membrane structure [4,5,6] Using such liposomes, it was shown that the surfactants, such as Triton X-100 and ethanol, with amphiphilic properties have an ability to invade the lipid bilayers and to form lipid/surfactant mixed micelles, which induce destabilization and destroy the lipid bilayer structure [7]

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